Hidden Soul
by Miss Anonymiss
Summary: SakuraXDeidara Deidara survives self-destruct and is captured. Sakura has Deidara's bloodline. eventual romance.
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: I do not own the rights to the manga nor the anime nor any movies, trading cards, etc. that go under the name Naruto. I do not own any of the characters in the Naruto series. Naruto belongs to Masashi Kishimoto.

--

After her fifteenth birthday, Sakura started wearing gloves more and more. She didn't do it because it was the latest fashion or she wanted to look unique. In fact, she wanted the opposite. She did it to hide a secret that started not long before the Suna rescue mission.

She didn't know what was happening when her hands started to hurt and bleed, as well as her chest, but when she went home to bandage them she was thankful that it happened when she was training alone. The same vile, disgusting mouths that an S-ranked missing nin that had killed Gaara had, were on her hands. Wonderful. Another reason to hide them.

She used stitches to keep them closed and she only hoped they would hold. She experimented on herself with medical procedures, mostly trying to figure what exactly they were and she was. She advanced enough that when team Kakashi went on another failed Sasuke retrieval mission, she was able to revive Deidara using her knowledge of herself and helped bring him into Konoha custody for questioning.

'Flashback'

BOOOM. What was that? "Search the area. Sasuke has been reported to be nearby." "Don't worry Sakura, we're going to find Sasuke Dattabayo!" "Thanks." "Let's split up."

Later Sakura and the nin dogs with her came across a crater in a devastated landscape. "Are you sure you smell Sasuke?" Not long after, Sakura found a body at the center of the crater. At first she thought it was Sasuke and rushed over, but after closer examination she discovered that it wasn't. It was Deidara of the Akatsuki.

"If we bring him back for questioning, we could find out where the Akatsuki and Itachi are, and also where Sasuke might be. Now if only he wasn't dead...Wait a minute!" Sakura had remembered that you can use chakra to restart the heart. He may not have one left after blowing himself up. There was, however, enough of him left for the chakra system of his bloodline to still be intact. The epiphany had come when Sakura figured out how to navigate her chakra through this system in order to reform Deidara's heart. The plan basically consisted of having the mouth on his chest swallow her chakra without spitting it back up and focus on internal growth instead of destruction. The actual application of said plan was the hard part.

'End Flashback'

This all leaves us where we are now. In an interrogation room, with Sakura attempting to question Deidara.

"How did you know how to revive me, un?"

"Hey! I'm the one who is supposed to be asking the questions here!"

"Then ask them, un."

"Where was Sasuke heading when you met him?"

"How should I know, un?"

"What can you tell me about the Akatsuki?"

"Nothing, un."

"Are you likely to commit suicide if we leave you alone?"

"How should I know, un?"

Arggh, Sakura thought.

As the questioning went on, she could feel herself become even more irritated than before. She could even feel her teeth grinding - all sets of them. With the way the mouths were moving, they were pulling against the stitches. She felt something snag in one of her hands and winced as she realized that she had pulled a stitch.

"You've got blood on your glove, un."

"I know that!" now I just ...gotta find.. damn stitches... She muttered on her way out.

On her way out, she met Tsunade. "What are you doing here? I ... I've got to go."

Tsunade stopped her in her tracks with a quiet "I know." "Know what?" "I know what you've been trying to hide and" "And how much of a freak I am?" "Sakura, listen to me! I don't care what others think of you, you will always be Sakura, the headstrong apprentice I took on, to me. I'm not about to betray you." "Thank you," Sakura replied before walking to the supply room of the hospital to pick up a needle and thread to start restitching.

A few unsuccessful sessions had passed since that first meeting. Other people have also tried interrogation.

"I could have blown this whole place up if I had my clay, un."

"I'd like to see you try," and with that Sakura placed a bag on the table in front of Deidara.

"My clay un!" Deidara wasted no time attempting to mold the clay and feed it to his hand mouths. That's right, attempting.

"What the hell did you do?!"

"Oh, just used a little medical jutsu to mess up your chakra system. Until it is released, you will not be able to focus chakra in your hands."

"You bitch!"

"If you had cooperated, you wouldn't be having this problem."

"Yeah right, un."

"Now, where is the leader of the Akatsuki?"

"..."

Sakura started to lean over the table. Several torture devices, internal and external were at her disposal but she preferred not to use them.

"Where are the rest of the Akatsuki located?"

"How the hell should I know, un? We rarely meet, un."

Sakura noticed him staring at her glove covered hands that she was all too self-conscious of and tried not to shiver, partly hiding her fear and nervousness.

"But you do meet. Where do - Hey!"

Sakura was interrupted when Deidara suddenly snatched one of her gloves away. She was reaching to get it back when the middle of her hand wiggled. The mouth was protesting against the stitches. She tried to hide it, but she knew he saw. She could only hope that he would think it some other cause.

He dangled it just out of her reach as she shouted at him to give it back. He relented and she wasted no time putting it back on. Sakura noticed that it felt a little strange, but pushed the thought back. She continued attempting to question him until her time was up. She took the clay back with her as she walked out and was replaced by another interrogator.

Later, Sakura noticed that the tongue in her hand was straining against the stitches, trying to taste – what, exactly? She waited until she was alone to remove her gloves, and finally noticed that the one was coated internally with the clay.

He knows. Since he wasn't giving up information about the Akatsuki despite his obvious dislike for the organization, practically the only thing keeping Deidara alive at this point was his bloodline. The elders were discussing whether or not having a clan with his abilities would be beneficial to the village. If they were to find out that she had the same potential, she would be stuck playing baby maker with him. Oh joy. The sarcasm in the previous statement could be seen on Sakura's face, but she didn't care.


	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: I do not own the rights to any of the manga nor the anime nor any movies, trading cards, etc. that go under the name Naruto. I do not own any of the characters in the Naruto series. Naruto belongs to Masashi Kishimoto.

--

The next day, after thoroughly washing out her gloves, she decided to ignore him and have another medic nin deal with him. Instead, she would visit Ino after her rounds in the hospital. She hadn't seen much of her friends since this whole debacle began. Kakashi and Naruto were both still on the mission to find Sasuke. Team ten would soon accompany them. The messengers had finally located the remainder of team seven and sent the message for them to wait. Ino and her teammates would soon leave to meet up with Kakashi and hopefully Naruto at the coordinates that were sent back. This might be the last time she would see her friend for a while. Might as well say goodbye and good luck while she was at it.

She found Ino at the flower shop. Sakura assumed that she had already finished training for the day. Ino was currently working at sorting flowers into various arrangements. They greeted each other like usual.

"Hey billboardbrow!"

"Hey ino-pig!"

"What are you doing here working when you could be spending the day saying goodbye to all your other friends?"

"I already said my goodbyes. Unfortunately I wasn't able to find you before." Ino shot Sakura a disapproving look.

"Heh heh" Sakura laughed nervously. "I guess I was too busy working myself. What else have you been up to?"

"Not much. The shop was been busy as usual. This morning I had 12 orders to fill."

"This morning? What are you doing working at the shop all day? Of course, it is probably the only time you get to meet guys other than your teammates."

"For your information, I am trying to earn money for the mission. It is obviously going to take quite a while and I don't want to rely on what we can find in the wilderness for all that time. Speaking of guys, how's that Akatsuki guy you helped bring in?" Ino replied.

"…" Sakura mumbled, disgruntled. "I didn't come here to talk about him."

The rest of the afternoon was spent discussing Sakura's lack of a love life ever since her faded crush on Sasuke.

What was supposed to be a relaxing afternoon off turned out to be not so relaxing after all.

--  
Sorry for the short chapter but I didn't want you to wait too long. Unfortunately, the rest of the story is taking a while.


	3. Chapter 3

Disclaimer: I do not own the rights to any of the manga nor the anime nor any movies, trading cards, etc. that go under the name Naruto. I do not own any of the characters in the Naruto series. Naruto belongs to Masashi Kishimoto.

--

The next day as she approached the room containing Deidara, she was stopped in the hallway by Tsunade. She wondered what her shishou was thinking of doing. Something must be going on for her to be here and not in her office or out gambling.

"Sakura, for the rest of this week, you are to maintain your regular duties at the hospital but you are not to enter the room with the Akatsuki criminal."

"Why, Tsunade-sensei?"

Tsunade sighed, looking down. She could use some sake right about now. "It seems that he missed you. We are trying to use –"

"To use me against him. I understand," Sakura finished.

"Where is she, un? She skipped out yesterday. Don't tell me she is skipping today too, un." The words were stated loud enough to be heard out in the hallway.

"I guess I should leave now," Sakura reluctantly stated. Tsunade nodded.

Sakura decided to use this time to train. She headed out towards an empty training grounds. Chakra control was practiced by creating craters of a set size before dodging the debris. For some reason, it was harder to create smaller craters than larger ones. Perhaps more control was needed, she reasoned.

One day Sakura decides to experiment with some clay. She sneaks into the building where Deidara now resides. She tells the guards on duty that she wants to keep tabs on Deidara's medical records. She goes into the room with his confiscated weapons and supplies and takes some clay. Sakura makes sure not to take enough for it to be noticed by anyone other than someone keeping track of each and every ounce.

Sakura is a nervous wreck as she pulls off her left glove. She is alone in her room as she carefully cuts through the stitches. The mouth is all too eager to chew up the clay that she feeds it, the tongue lashing and curling around the clay after it is spit out. It is simply a medley of shapes, but the meaning behind it is one more step towards self-acceptance. In her excitement, she accidently activates the small bomb. A small boom is heard. "I'm okay, I just dropped a medical book," she tells her worried parents. Perhaps next time she should play with the clay outside. Next time? Sakura wonders.

To occupy the rest of her time, Sakura decides to go on minor missions, C-ranked ones that wouldn't keep her from the hospital for too long. Meanwhile, she has been informed that progress is actually being made concerning Deidara. Her latest mission involves yet another lost cat. The entire afternoon was spent with the cat, most of the time spent trying to keep the cat from clawing her arms to shreds.

When she returned, she found both Tsunade and Deidara awaiting her in the Hokage's office. Apparently a deal was made when she was gone. Unfortunately, it involves her without her consent.

"What do you mean I have to!"

"Sakura, sacrifices have to be made. Deal with it."

"Easy for you to say. You're not the one who will have to live with the explosion-obsessed criminal. I've got the feeling that he will blow me up in my sleep and call it artwork!"

"I can if you want, un." Deidara butted in cheekily.

"NO! And stay out of it." Sakura replied.

"Why? From what I can tell, this entire conversation is about me, isn't it, un?" Deidara replied back.

"Dammit!" Sakura banged on the wall with her fist. Boom. A small crater was made. "Oops, my bad."

"Sakura, I will not accept insubordination. This is your duty as a leaf ninja." Tsunade declared, for once sitting at her full height.

"Okay, I'll do it," Sakura begrudgingly stated.

You will probably have to wait a little longer for the next chapter. I haven't started writing it yet.


	4. Chapter 4

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto. If I did, I would be a much better writer.  
--

Sakura's evening was spent in preparation for moving into the shared apartment. She would be Deidara's primary guardian. She would also have as her job getting information out of him. Currently, he was still in his cell. They would both be under constant surveillance. The available Anbu would work in six hour shifts of four to a shift. Their main job would be to act as guards and stay out of sight. She sighed. Being so close to an s-class criminal would be hell.

The day after Sakura met up with the guards currently in charge of Deidara, suitcase in tow. Understandably, he didn't have much in the way of personal belongings when they took him in, so essentials would be provided for him. "Let's just get this over with."

"That eager to be alone with me, un?"

That proved it. This day could get worse. The Anbu guards were staying out of sight, but everyone knew they were there. "It's not like they are being secretive about it, un. What's the point of them staying out of sight?"

"The point is so that you don't know which direction to attack."

"If I was going to attack, I would have done so already. One's right there, un," and Deidara pointed to one Anbu's hiding spot.

"Will you just stop it? It's the idea that counts." Sakura was starting to lose her temper.

"If it's the idea that counts in this village, no wonder it produces lousy ninja, un." That was it! She had enough of his smart-alicky behavior. Slap!

"Let go." "No, you'll only try to hit me again, un."

Luckily the having the Anbu around meant that she didn't have to spend all of her time with him. Just most of it. Sakura was excused to continue her medical duties. If only she could be excused to take her frustrations out on a training field.

Later after work, Sakura decided to stop by Ichiraku's for a late lunch. Tenten stopped by to eat and took the stool right next to her. After discussing work, training, or current lack of it in Sakura's case, and Sakura's current frustration with Deidara, Tenten surprised Sakura by stating, "It sounds like you were flirting to me."

"What! I was not!" "Ah, denial." "There's nothing to deny! He's a jerk and I have no interest in him." "Are you sure about that?"

Those five simple words continued to haunt Sakura as she went about futilely questioning Deidara that evening.


	5. Chapter 5

Disclaimer: I still claim not to own Naruto.

Sakura had had a long day at work. Several broken bones, a fractured pelvis, a damaged liver, a few punctured lungs, infections from people who refused prior wound treatment, five snake bites, and three burn victims. Apparently a team of genin had attempted a new way to start a camp fire. It was routine work but filling out the paper work afterwards with Lee talking about how youthful she was after she had healed whatever he had broken this time was what made it seem long. She went 'home' only to find Deidara just sitting around waiting for her to make dinner. Would she rather he try to blow the place up? No weapons of any kind were allowed in the vicinity, but he could be creative and try something new. Perhaps she should be thankful for small blessings.

She decided to make something easy. A simple vegetable soup would do. As she was chopping up ingredients with a chakra scalpel (no knives), she asked him, "Who is your leader?" "Leader-sama, un." As if Sakura could have expected anything else. "What is Leader-sama's name?" "Leader-sama, un."

She divided the soup into two bowls and placed them on the table. Deidara kept looking at her gloves while she asked him if he would rather stay a prisoner or answer her questions.

"If this is being a prisoner, I'll take both it and you if you want, un."

"That's it! You are not going to get another bite of food this evening!" Sakura reached over to take his bowl from him only to find that it was empty.

"That's okay, un. I already finished eating while you were talking, un." And another day had passed.

As time went on, Deidara showed increasing interest in Sakura, or rather her hands. It was rather unnerving. She supposed she could use this to her advantage as seduction was a method of extracting information, but she preferred not to. They were already getting too close for her comfort. He surprised her as she was getting ready for work one morning by saying "You have nothing to hide, un."

Sakura responded by nervously stating, "I don't know what you're talking about." Instead of letting the conversation end with that, Deidara just continued. "See? That just shows that you are hiding something, un. If you weren't, you would have said something along the lines of 'Of course I don't' or 'All ninja must know how to hide', un."

"Look, it's my life, okay? I don't need something else for people to make fun of." Deidara was starting to become upset at the fact that she seemed to be ashamed of her power.

"And I repeat, you have nothing to hide, un."

--

PS. Ever have those days when you feel like deleting your entire account?


	6. Chapter 6

Disclaimer: Masashi Kishimoto owns Naruto, not me.

This chapter is short because I was wondering if I should have Deidara join Konoha or have Sakura leave Konoha?  
--

"And I repeat, you have nothing to hide, un." With that sentence, Deidara grabbed Sakura and pulled her to his chest. He looked down, smirking, before planting his lips upon hers. Sakura was surprised at how warm and tender he was and started to lose herself. She rubbed her bare hands over his back. Wait a minute, bare hands? He stole her gloves again!

As she pulled away, she frowned. "Hey give them back!" "No, un." "Why not?" "Why hide? I like you just the way you are." He left her standing there with her hand pressed against her lips, wondering, as he headed into the kitchen.

Sakura decided not to follow him and instead went into the bathroom to shower. If he tried anything, the Anbu would be there to stop him, she reasoned. After her quick shower, she grabbed some clothes to change into in the bedroom, glad that Deidara was still in the kitchen. Luckily for her, she owned more than one pair of gloves.

The day at work went on as usual, but Sakura was a little preoccupied. Thankfully she realized this and delegated herself to the simpler tasks such as lacerations and routine checkups. She wondered what would happen to Deidara if he didn't give away any information soon.


	7. Chapter 7

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto.

Thank you for the reviews. A long wait, another short chapter and the debate is still open to the public.  
--

This may be Deidara's last interrogation session, Sakura worried as she came home. If he didn't give out any information soon, he may become a dead sperm donor. She didn't know why this worried her so much, but she figured that they were getting closer than she had thought. She found Deidara lounging on the old couch in the main room. It didn't matter that she was tired from work, she would do her best to question him anyway.

"What is the name and location of your leader?" Deidara started to approach Sakura before suddenly grabbing her upper arms. He whispered in her ear as he pressed against her, "You want to find out Leader-sama's name? Join me, un."

Sakura couldn't help enjoying the sensation that his warm breathe caused upon her skin. She almost forgot what he said.

"I am a loyal Konoha konoichi. I am not leaving this village," she said as she pushed him back.

"Fine then. You'll never find out, un," He responded as he started to leave the room.

"Wait! I figure that you don't care about dying, but wouldn't you rather go out with a bang on a battlefield than anesthetized in a hospital?" He paused.

"And how is that going to happen, un? Are you ever going to give me back my clay, un?" "Maybe." "Maybe, un." Deidara snorted.

Sakura looked down blushing a little. It was embarrassing to admit this, but she had to do it. She had to accept herself, whatever the village restrictions may be. She looked up at him.

"Maybe if you teach me about what I am?" This seemed to catch his attention as he turned around to face her.

"It's not what, but who you are, un."


	8. Chapter 8

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or any of the other characters.

I made up Deidara's last name and I will continue to fake his history. I'm sorry. The updates will continue to get further apart.  
--

"It's not what, but who you are, un."

"Then who am I?"

"You are one of the last of a small clan, un. In fact, I thought I was the only one left so there was no need for a last name that would not be recognized, un."

"And that last name would be?" Sakura questioned.

"Kurebakuha."

"You're right. I don't recognize it." Sakura responded.

"Would you let me continue, un? I thought you wanted to know," Deidara complained. "Most people thought that we specialized in spying, while in fact we did specialize in subterfuge. Of course, I was never one for being subtle, un."

"That much is obvious."

"Hey! I like my explosions to be recognized for the true art that they are, un."

"Art?" Sakura wondered out loud. She looked at him before looking away.

"Yes." Deidara walked up to her and grabbed her wrist. In her confused state, Sakura let him. He placed her hand in front of her. "And now you too are capable of such art."

Dinner was a quiet affair, as both contemplated what they were going to do next. Needless to say, Sakura was uncomfortable knowing what she needed to do and what she wanted were in conflict.

The next day during her usual hospital rounds, Sakura pondered how she was going to get Tsunade to let Deidara help her practice with whatever new powers she had.

She figured that if they were still under surveillance with chakra restraints on him, it should be okay. Now to just focus her courage and ask Tsunade-sama as the Hokage and her sensei.

Sakura was nervous as she walked up to the hokage's office after her shift. The office that contained a drinking Tsunade and a few guards.

"Tsunade-sama, I am here to propose a plan."

"Yes, Sakura-chan?" Well, Tsunade was interested enough to offer a reply. Sakura continued.

"If I let Deidara, I mean, the prisoner, teach me, I could get close enough to him for him to let his guard down. We could actually get some information out of him that way." Not to mention the fact that she was already getting too close.

"And what do you want from me?"

"Well, you could authorize access to his clay."

"And let him get to blow this village up? Not a chance." Despite her words, Tsunade looked like she was still willing to listen.

"If we use chakra restraints so that he can't use his chakra," "It would still be risky," Tsunade interrupted.

"If only I am allowed access to the clay and he isn't allowed to actually use it?"

"Then how would he demonstrate how to teach you?" Tsunade questioned. "Nice, but it is too dangerous. You're going to have to win his trust another way."

"Thank you for considering my request, Tsunade-sama," and with a bow, Sakura left the room. So much for plan A. She was going to have to steal clay, use it in Anbu presence, and hope nobody thought her enough of a danger to worry about. She had already used the excuse of checking his records. Maybe she could say that she would be updating them. That way, Sakura could take them with her, some clay hidden inside. Plan B would commence now.

--

kure- + bakuha –- clay + explosion


	9. Chapter 9

Disclaimer: I do not claim to own Naruto. If I did, it wouldn't be nearly as popular as it is now.  
--

Sakura stopped by the interrogation office on her way back to the shared apartment. She greeted the guards and was allowed access inside. When she asked to see Deidara's records, she answered their questions by telling them that it was for interrogation purposes. She wanted to get closer to him in order to get more information out of him. What little knowledge they had on his background would help.

They seemed a little skeptical but let Sakura have access to his records anyway. She was in. Now she just had to distract them as she took the clay.

"Whoops!" Sakura let one of the folders slide out of her hands and into the container with his confiscated items and weapons. "Sorry about that. I'll get it." She managed to scoop up some clay into the folder. Now if anyone asked, she could always pretend it was an accident.

Sakura messed up some of the other items in her ploy so that it would be harder to tell that some of the clay was missing. She straightened up, folder in hand, and asked "Can I take this with me?"

When asked "Why?" she answered, "I think I might be able to dig up some new information to go in it. Besides, it's not like it contains any information Deidara doesn't already know."

She received permission. Everything was working out fine.

That evening Sakura asked Deidara if he could teach her. "What can I teach you without my clay, un?" Sakura bent over to take something out of a folder. "My clay, un!"

"Perhaps we should hold off on any explosions." When Deidara gave her a questioning look, she answered with the fact that they didn't want to draw any unnecessary attention from the current lookouts.

"First, you're going to have to take those gloves of yours off, un." She complied and he winced at seeing her stitches. A chakra scalpel, a few tugs and a little healing later and the stitches were gone. Her mouths were there for all the world to see.

"Now we can start your training, un."


	10. Chapter 10

Disclaimer: If I owned Naruto, I wouldn't be attempting to write a fanfiction. Naruto is owned by Masashi Kishimoto.  
--

Sakura and Deidara agreed that it would be best to start with the basics. Sakura would attempt to mold the clay without adding any chakra. The hand-mouths chewed up the clay and spit it out. Trying not to add chakra was hard but not beyond her control.

"Now focus on a specific shape in your mind, un."

Focus on a shape. What shape? Sakura was busy trying to figure out a specific shape – square, sphere, disc, kunai? – when she heard Deidara exclaim.

"That's not a specific shape. That's a jumbled mess, un."

"I'm trying!" "Try thinking of a shape before you start molding the clay."

A shape, a shape, that's it! "That's a ball, un."

"A ball's a shape!" A basic shape, that is, but Sakura didn't want to add that as she was already embarrassed.

"I guess I shouldn't have expected any better from you, un." Deidara sighed and shook his head. He looked like he was disappointed. What did he expect? Was he mocking her?

Sakura refused to let her temper get the best of her. She could and would do better. She shifted the ball between her hands. What would she make? This time she would try to replicate a living creature. A spider has eight legs, thorax and abdomen are connected…

"Much better, un. Maybe now you can add chakra to control it, un."

"I'd like to keep my first attempt as it is. Besides, I thought that adding chakra to the clay would make it explode, something I am sure would catch the guards attention. They would have us strung up so fast under maximum security."

Before Sakura could continue to rant, Deidara interrupted. "There is such a thing as adding chakra without making it explode, un. Try working on that, un."

"How can you tell the difference?"

"To add chakra so that the clay figure won't explode you need to think of more soothing and less intense chakra, un."

She would make another spider. Sakura was too busy trying to fill the clay with calm energy that she used too much chakra.

"Sakura, I don't think you meant to do that, un." Deidara chuckled. "Oops. He he, sorry."

Crawling from her hand was not one but many small clay spiders.

"Is there any way to extract the chakra?" Sakura asked nervously.

"You could try chewing it up and swallowing the chakra, un. Too bad that we can't have these explode, un."

"I don't want to draw unnecessary attention."

"You're going to draw attention sooner or later, un. Better to deal with it now, and watch the fireworks at their brightest, un." The problem was Sakura didn't want there to be any fireworks. She tried to figure out how to work things out as she gathered the spiders and chewed the clay back up, but she was just too tired. Deidara volunteered to clean things up, but she didn't trust him not to use the clay so she put it away herself.

--  
The next day after Sakura's shift at the hospital, she passed by the tower and noticed a bit of commotion going on and a few people rushing about. Alarmed, she made her way to the Hokage's office.

"What's the problem, Tsunade-sama?" Tsunade was obviously stressed and Sakura certainly didn't want to get on her bad side.

"A few of Deidara's records are missing, Sakura."

"Is that all?" Sakura relaxed in relief. "What do you mean, is that all?!"

"I thought I told the guards that I was borrowing some of his records in order to record any new information."

"Well, they neglected to mention it on their report. If you tell me when it was, I can look up the specific ninja on duty and deal with more paperwork on their negligence of paperwork." Tsunade was disgruntled. Perhaps it was the thought of paperwork.

"There's no need. It's fine." "Are you sure?" "Yes, yes."

"So, did you get any new information on him?"

Should Sakura tell her? Wouldn't hurt. "I didn't find any information on the Akatsuki."

"But?" "But I did find out his last name. Kurebakuha."


	11. Chapter 11

I do not own Naruto.  
--

"I didn't find any information on the Akatsuki."

"But?" "But I did find out his last name. Kurebakuha."

"I'm sorry, but I don't recognize the name." Tsunade stated.

"He says they specialized in subterfuge." Sakura almost pleaded.

"Then that's probably why. They wouldn't want themselves to be found out. They might have kept to themselves and used a lot of pseudonyms."

"Then there might be some others out there." Sakura was excited to hear possible good news about her extended family.

"Just because they use fake names doesn't mean that they're not distinctive. If they were around, you would know it with their style of fighting."

"Or would I?" Tsunade raised an eyebrow. "Come again?"

"I appear to be a member of that clan, and not even I knew it until a few years ago. There could very well be others out there."

"And how many has Deidara found?" Sakura looked timid. "None, except for me."

"Exactly." But how hard has he been looking? Sakura thought to herself.

"Wait a minute, you're telling me that he knows?!"

Tsunade pulled back. "Anyways, how much more information do you think you can get without going to far in seducing him?" But who was truly seducing whom?

"If you allow him to train me, I might get him to open up about his former colleagues."

"If he talks about the Akatsuki after taking you on as an apprentice, it will mean that he trusts you," "So I just need to get him to trust me." Sakura quickly interrupted. "To leave the village and go with him back to the Akatsuki."

Sakura was appalled. "I would never betray Konoha." No more than she already had? She had already given a pyromaniac access to exploding clay. Where would she end?

"Which is why we are trying to make him truly need you, not just use you."

When Sakura returned to her shared apartment, she nearly sighed with relief that nothing appeared to have exploded. Of course, this probably meant a sulking Deidara, being so close to his clay and not being allowed to use it.

--

"Hello again." "Hey, un."

Deidara grumbled, "I still don't understand why everyone is so concerned with me blowing anything up, un."

"It's not the destruction of property but the potential destruction of human lives. In their eyes, it would be better for you not blow anything up than risk you blowing anyone up."

"You mentioned in their eyes, un. What about in your eyes Sakura?"

"I suppose it would be okay, as long as nobody is killed or severely injured," Sakura admitted.

"Isn't the destruction of human lives what ninja's do for a living, un? Haven't you, even as a medic nin, killed before, un?"

"That was for my village," Sakura rebutted, "and we are trying to keep you from killing for the Akatsuki."

"I stuck to my word. Isn't that good enough, un?"

"What do you mean by that?" Sakura was confused. What word did he stick to?

"When I was teaching you, I could have swiped some clay and blown myself out of this joint, but I didn't. I'm not here for the Akatsuki, un."

"Are you going back to the Akatsuki?" Sakura questioned. "…"

Deidara had no answer. He didn't know himself what he was going to do. Should he go back? Would they even accept him back? If he was accused of ratting on his teammates, he would be subjected to a fate worse than death. Would it matter if he actually told or not?

Sakura left the den and headed into the kitchen. There she gathered bread and opened the refrigerator for potential sandwich ingredients. Deidara followed behind without her knowing. He spun her around and before she could attack, he clasped her hands in his.

"One of the first things we have to work on is your self-confidence, un." He removed her gloves. "You need to stop wearing these gloves, un."

"If you're so self-confident, why are you so afraid of telling us anything? What could happen?"

"Believe me, you don't want to know, un." That was the end of the conversation. Each was deep in thought during dinner, Sakura thinking about her coworkers and friends reactions to the mouths on her hands and Deidara thinking about what giving out any information would be worth.

What both forgot was that the Anbu were always watching, and had seen the practice session the day before. It was written up in the report and on the Hokage's desk, in a stack of papers ready for Tsunade to read.


	12. Chapter 12

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or any of his friends.

A/N: Sorry for the brevity, but the purpose of this chapter is to inform you that I am very much alive, though updates will be fewer and farther between, and that Sakura leaving has won over Deidara staying. Thank you all who have reviewed and thank you for reading this story.  
--

The next day found Sakura standing in front of Tsunade.

"Sakura," Tsunade sighed, looking slightly mournful.

"Yes, Tsunade-sama?" Sakura was worried. One did not get called into the Hokage's office over trivial matters. Unless of course you were Naruto, but he used to sneak in. Remembering Naruto caused her to wonder if her teammates would ever return, but the sound of a thump jolted her back into the present.

"What the hell were you thinking?!" Tsunade was visibly bristling. Of all the stupid things her apprentice could do, to have that level of trust in an s-class criminal. For all they knew, everything Deidara said could be a lie.

Sakura winced. "If Deidara wanted to just blow everything up, he would have done so by now. Besides, he told me that he wasn't going to. I have been given no reason to doubt what he says as the information has been given rather reluctantly. If he was lying, he would have done so from the start."

"Have you forgotten? You yourself messed with his chakra system. The only reason why he hasn't blown anything up is because he can't, not because of any promises that you might have made. And anyways, good liars know not just what to say, but how and when to say it. He may have just been waiting for the moment when you would be most likely to believe him."

"If you can't trust him, can you at least trust me with him?" Sakura pleaded.

"No." Tsunade's answer seemed final. "You will still accompany him, but someone else will interrogate him. The anbu will still be watching both of you."

Nothing Sakura could say would change her sensei's mind, and she said the only thing she could. "Thank you, Hokage-sama."

As Sakura walked out of the Hokage's office and down through the tower, she could feel her loyalties being torn.


	13. Chapter 13

Disclaimer: I still do not own Naruto.  
--

Sakura was slightly forlorn when she entered the apartment, only talking when needed. Her silence did not go unnoticed. It was like a cloud was hanging over her head.

"Why are you so quiet and not spouting off questions like usual, un?" Deidara questioned after dinner.

"I'm not your interrogator anymore, Deidara."

"You're not? Why, un?"

"What we did was a mistake. I need to make a formal apology to the Hokage and the council."

"What about what you want, un?"

"I don't know." Sakura had enough. She couldn't take her inner turmoil anymore. "I just, don't know."

"How can you be loyal to a village that doesn't want you to use your talents, un?"

"What makes you think they don't want to use me? That's the only reason why you're still alive."

"Then why are you hiding, un?"

"I don't want to just be a tool to be used." "By being a konoichi, you're already a tool. But…" "But what? I'll go dull if I don't use my skills?"

"But to me, you have the potential of being an artist, un."

Sakura was a little perplexed at what he said. Artist? Just because they had the same bloodline limit? "I was never very good at art."

"Nonsense! The crater you made with just your fist in the Hokage's office, that was art, un. And I can tell that you are capable of a lot more."

She would love to show him just what she was capable of on a training field. Unfortunately that wasn't an option. "Did you forget that we are under guard? And I wouldn't be surprised if I wasn't allowed to leave this apartment either."

"They didn't take the clay, un."

"What?"

"They didn't take the clay. I can still train you in pseudo art. It's not the same, un," At that point Deidara leaned in to whisper in Sakura's ear. She tried not to blush at the heat of his breath as he continued to say "But eventually we can break out of here and show them real art, un. Of course, I would need your help."

"Why-" shh. "why would I help you destroy Konoha?"

"What has your loyalty done for you? Locked up with an S-class criminal, un."

"What has your own loyalty done?" She thought she would have him with that comeback, but he simply chuckled, tickling her ear. "I was only truly loyal to myself. I didn't give any information away simply because it was in my own best interest, un."

"Then you will just throw me away." Tsunade was right. He was just using her.

"No. I _was _only loyal to myself, un. By the way, I think that we have been in this intimate embrace long enough, don't you?" At that, Sakura did blush. She hadn't realized the position they were in while they were whispering in each other's ear. They had their arms around each other while her chin rested on Deidara's left shoulder. They pulled apart, slowly so as not to draw anymore attention than they had. As Sakura went to leave the room, Deidara commented "Talk to you later, un."

After not training for over a week, Sakura was tempted to help him blow the apartment up. The only thing stopping her was the knowledge that she would be disappointing her friends, who had run off, leaving her here, and that they wouldn't get past the ANBU guards. Or would they? After all, Deidara is an S-class ninja.


	14. Chapter 14

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto.

A/N: School has started, so it will be a while between updates. On top of that, I might be changing my email address, so I'll see how that goes. That shouldn't be for a couple months, though. Enjoy!

--

Sakura had decided on her answer. Later that evening, she invited Deidara onto her bed. After curling up next to a smirking Deidara, Sakura stated, "You're only here because I wanted to continue the conversation from earlier."

"And what is your decision, un?"

"I will help you break out of here on the condition that we leave without destroying Konoha."

"Aww, but-" "It's either that or I confess everything to the council and you are either put under maximum security in a boring, never-changing cell or become a dead lab rat."

"Fine, but there's one thing you need to do before we are able to leave."

Sakura looked questioningly at him. Deidara couldn't believe that she had forgotten.

"Unblock my chakra channels, un." "Oh, he he. That's right. So when do we leave?"

"We blow this coop asap, un." Deidara replied as Sakura ran her chakra over his arms, letting his chakra flow normally again. Tired, Sakura decided that she would pack what she needed tomorrow. She fell asleep lying against his chest with his arms entwined with hers.

The next day as they were rushing around while appearing to be cleaning, Deidara asked her, "Any reason why you decided to join me?"

"Tsunade doesn't put any trust in me," "I wonder why," Deidara mumbled under his breath. "And all my friends are somewhere out there without me."

"You're not going to burst into song, are you?" "No." "Good, un."

A few minutes of silence passed before Sakura asked, "What will we do out there?"

"What do you mean?" "Well, we have to do something if we want to earn a living, even if it is just stealing. Are we going to start the Kurebakuha explosion company?"

"Don't be ridiculous. It would be 'artists for hire', un." Deidara smirked at her. Sakura smiled back, grateful for a slight lightening of the mood.

Before she knew it, it was time to leave. Deidara reached into one of the bags of clay they had collected. Three… two… one…

BOOM! During the shockwave of the blast when all the debris were still clouding the air, they both jumped onto the back of the second bird that Deidara had formed and quickly expanded. They were off.

Sakura was now a missing-nin. It felt strange leaving almost everything that she knew behind, venturing out into an unknown world. A world in which she could truly be herself.

She felt bad leaving behind her friends, but knew that the ones that would understand were out there waiting for her to catch up.


End file.
